Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Unprecedented Numbers Exercise 2A Rights in 2020

Monday, January 11, 2021

Unprecedented Numbers Exercise 2A Rights in 2020

Millions of Americans exercised their Second Amendment rights for the first time in 2020. And, it’s easy to understand why.

Bare shelves at local grocery stores fueled fears that the breakdown in supply chains would lead to a breakdown in our social order. Inmates released early to stem the spread of the virus within prisons and rising unemployment led to fears of a crime wave. Americans watching this unfold in real time realized that they may be able to rely on only themselves. 

Americans didn’t wait for tragedy; they acted to make sure they were not part of the tragic tale of 2020. They applied for permits to obtain or carry a firearm. They purchased handguns and long guns at a rate no one could have imagined, and did so at a time when some states were trying to shut down permit offices and gun shops. The spike in demand led to inventory shortages that likely reduced sales.  

The FBI conducted 39,695,315 total NICS background checks last year. That is the annual record, beating the year 2019 by more than 11.3 million background checks.

The difference in background checks between 2020 and 2019 was more than the number of checks run in any of the first nine years NICS existed. This record was expected given what we saw all year: month after month of record-setting numbers. March was the busiest month ever for the NICS office, until June reset the record. June only held the record until December.

There were 3,937,066 total NICS checks run last month. The number of NICS checks had broken three million in a single month a single time before 2020. It happened eight times last year. Those eight months were among the nine busiest months ever. Nine individual weeks in 2020 rate among the ten highest weeks of all-time, including two weeks in December (third and sixth all-time). That list includes every full week in June, and two consecutive weeks in November.

We know from retailer reports that about 40% of buyers were first-time gun buyers, and that there were significant increases in the percentage and number of female and minority gun buyers. Forty-percent of those first-time gun buyers were women. The 2nd Amendment is not bound by race, gender, or socio-economic status.

It is about giving Americans a fighting chance to defend themselves and their families. 

Millions of Americans gave themselves that chance last year. A significant majority of those purchasing handguns, shotguns, or semi-automatic rifles indicated they were doing so to protect themselves. The FBI ran 11,897,521 handgun-related NICS checks last year and 7,132,864 checks related to long guns. Both are records; those numbers represent a 47% increase in the number of handgun-related checks and about a 0.1% increase in the number of long-gun related checks.

This reality is something no ivory tower academic would have ever predicted. Gun controllers, desperate for attention during 2020, tried to make every crisis about so-called gun violence while running away from the issue during the election.  Maybe they got the hint after months of record-setting background check numbers, but elitist gun controllers have already shown how far they’ll go to create a false narrative about the gun buyers of 2020. They’ve been working behind the scenes to advance their agenda without legislative input, and you can expect that strategy to continue under the next administration.

Those who write for academic journals, magazines, and textbooks will focus considerable energy to the issues and impact of 2020, and they’ll be encouraged to overlook or downplay the significance of the gun-buying surge of 2020. You can expect gun grabbers holding political office and professional anti-gun activists to try to control the narrative.  

You can also expect the NRA to continue our mission of safeguarding the fundamental right of every American to defend themselves and their families. 

We – through the will of our members and supporters – have been doing it for 150 years.

IN THIS ARTICLE
Background Checks/NICS
TRENDING NOW
Biden’s Executive Order Targeting Gun Ownership

News  

Wednesday, March 15, 2023

Biden’s Executive Order Targeting Gun Ownership

On Tuesday, Joe Biden issued an executive order on gun control that could accurately be described as a mile wide and an inch deep.

Columnist thinks gun owners can be shamed out of their rights

News  

Monday, March 20, 2023

Columnist thinks gun owners can be shamed out of their rights

At least one of the joyless scolds that predominate in gun control circles thinks they’ve stumbled onto a novel anti-gun tactic. According to Colorado Newsline Editor Quentin Young, gun control supporters should try to shame gun ...

Updates to ATF Final Rule on Stabilizing Braces

News  

Monday, January 30, 2023

Updates to ATF Final Rule on Stabilizing Braces

On Monday, January 30, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives’ (ATF) published the final Factoring Criteria for Firearms with Attached “Stabilizing Braces” rule for public inspection in the federal register.

U.S. Taxpayers Funding “Red Flag” Gun Confiscation Orders

News  

Monday, March 20, 2023

U.S. Taxpayers Funding “Red Flag” Gun Confiscation Orders

Texans are paying for so-called “Red Flag” gun confiscation orders in New York. North Carolinians are bankrolling Extreme Risk Protective Orders (ERPOs) in New Jersey. Louisianans are footing the bill for gun confiscation orders in Maryland.

Washington: Senate Committee Hearing California-Style Gun Ban & Waiting Period Bills

Friday, March 17, 2023

Washington: Senate Committee Hearing California-Style Gun Ban & Waiting Period Bills

On March 23rd, at 8:00AM, the Senate Committee on Law & Justice will hear House Bill 1240, a comprehensive gun ban bill, and House Bill 1143, to impose a waiting period and training mandate for acquiring ...

Florida: Senate’s Constitutional Carry Passes Committee

Thursday, March 9, 2023

Florida: Senate’s Constitutional Carry Passes Committee

Today, the Senate Fiscal Policy Committee voted 11-6 to approve Senate Bill 150, constitutional carry, with an amendment aligning the language with the House’s version. It will now go to the full Senate for further consideration.

The New Mexico Legislature Finishes Its 2023 Regular Session

Sunday, March 19, 2023

The New Mexico Legislature Finishes Its 2023 Regular Session

The New Mexico Legislature wrapped up at noon on Saturday, March 18.  Below is a list of gun control bills which passed and extreme anti-gun legislation which NRA-ILA worked to defeat with pro-Second Amendment lawmakers, members of the firearms ...

Michigan: Senate Passes Gun Control Schemes

Thursday, March 16, 2023

Michigan: Senate Passes Gun Control Schemes

Today, the Senate passed anti-gun bill packages to criminalize private transfers, require firearms be made unavailable for self-defense, and allow Second Amendment rights to be suspended without due process. They will now move to the House for further ...

Washington: Updates on Anti-Gun Bills

Tuesday, February 28, 2023

Washington: Updates on Anti-Gun Bills

Three major anti-gun bills still remain active in the Legislature, while others are likely defeated for the session. The NRA provided testimony and strong, united opposition to these bills throughout the legislative process thus far.

Florida: House Judiciary Passes Constitutional Carry

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

Florida: House Judiciary Passes Constitutional Carry

Today, the House Judiciary Committee voted 17-6 to advance House Bill 543, the constitutional carry bill. It will now go to the House floor for debate.

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.